Understanding LoRa-Based Localization: Foundations and Challenges

LoRa is a wireless technology for the Internet of Things useful for smart city applications that require node location for monitoring or management. The literature presents multiple surveys for localization in wireless networks but not a comprehensive analysis regarding LoRa localization. Therefore, this article presents different localization techniques along with the metrics employed. Then, this article presents the challenges that the LoRa technology faces when using these techniques and possible solutions from the literature. Next, this article presents a comparative analysis of the reviewed works with unresolved issues. The results reveal that systems using time as a localization metric exhibit smaller localization error than those using signal levels. However, each method was tested under different conditions. Hence, this article is useful for comparing and selecting a localization system for LoRa in a given work scenario.